This recipe is strictly for those with a sweet tooth, or two. Any shortbread is nice but add a thick layer of caramel and then another, of chocolate, and you have a rich, sweet variant. It is the sort of thing that you don’t want a large portion of, or you will feel decidedly sick quite soon.
Although I have made this on my blog already I didn’t have a video of it, so today I made it again, adjusting the amount of chocolate for a thinner top layer
Just a note about the recipe, it says to stir the condensed milk, butter and golden syrup mixture until it thickens, and turns a nice caramel colour. Well deciding at what point the mixture is thick enough is a matter of fine judgement. If you don’t think yours is thick enough when you have let it cool you can simply boil it again until it thickens more.
The other consideration is the chocolate to use. I used a mixture of dark and milk chocolate, as I judged that all dark chocolate might have been too bitter for this particular confection. I used about 2 to 1 dark to milk chocolate. Others may wish to vary the ratio, it is all a matter of taste, and understanding who will be eating it.
- 225g(1 3/4 cups) plain flour
- 175g(1 1/2 stick + 1 tsp)unsalted butter, cold, cut into cubes
- 75g(5 tbsp)caster sugar
- 150g(1 stick + 2 tbsp) butter
- 1 x 397g(14 oz) can condensed milk
- 100g(3½oz) golden syrup
- 250g(9 oz)dark chocolate, or a mixture of dark and milk, chopped into small pieces
- Preheat the oven to 150C/300F/Gas 2. Line a 23cm/9in square cake tin with baking parchment.
- Combine the flour and butter cubes in a food processor and pulse until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. (Alternatively, you can rub the butter in by hand.)
- Add in the caster sugar and pulse again until combined.
- Tip the mixture into the lined cake tin and spread it out evenly with the back of a spoon. Then press the shortbread down firmly with your knuckles so that it is tightly packed in the tin.
- Bake the shortbread for 30 minutes or until very light golden brown. Set aside to cool.
- Meanwhile, for the topping, heat the butter, condensed milk and golden syrup in a saucepan, stirring occasionally until the butter is melted and the mixture is smooth.
- Increase the heat and bring the mixture to the boil, stirring frequently. The caramel will thicken and turn golden-brown. Set aside to cool slightly, then pour over the cooled shortbread. Allow to cool completely( I did this in the fridge).
- Melt the chocolate carefully in shorts bursts in a microwave(or in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water, ensuriing that the bottom of the bowl does not touch the water).
- Pour the melted chocolate over the caramel and set aside until the chocolate has cooled. Cut it before it has completely set hard to ensure it doesn’t crack. Then allow to set completely(I did this in the fridge).